Monday, March 25, 2013

Welcome Our Newest Writer, dm23HOF


I want to personally welcome to the Greedy Pinstripes family our newest writer and my personal friend dm23HOF. His first post was late last night telling a story about the time he got his childhood idol's autograph Don Mattingly, seen HERE, and how much of a wonderful family life he had. I want to personally welcome with open arms the newest writer and my good friend dm23HOF to the family. Now get to work!

Vernon & Charlene Wells Added To Wives & Girlfriends


Newly acquired Vernon Wells and his wife Charlene Wells have been added to the very popular Wives & Girlfriends section so go give them a view. Spoiler alert he wen't way above his head when he bagged her but I guess $20+ million annually can make any guy look attractive. I joke... kind of. Go check it out HERE!

Youtube: Vernon Wells Highlights


Granted these are from 2011 but still worth the share for the newest New York Yankee.

Where will the Yankees end up in 2013?

In exactly one week, the Yankees ultimate battle begins: the road to the Chase For 28. However, the changes and deductions have the Yankees in uncertainty.

I believe that the Yankees will overcome all of their injuries and end up back on top in the AL East. Last season it was uncertain when Brett Gardner and Mariano Rivera went down, but players stepped up and the Yankees were back on top. The same instance could happen this season with the Yankees.

So, where do you believe the Yankees will end up by the end of the 2013 season?

[polldaddy poll=6991501]

Pineda To Throw Live Batting Practice

Michael Pineda will throw a 45-pitch bullpen tomorrow, which is good news as he continues his rehab from a torn labrum in his shoulder.

While Pineda has said he's felt no discomfort what-so-ever, and his command has been "perfect", it wouldn't be the first time a player sounded overly optimistic about his recovery. It's when the coaches say Michael looks good and strong that I feel better about him.

The good news doesn't end there, and gets even better, as Pineda is scheduled to throw live batting practice in two weeks.

I still believe the trade that brought Michael Pineda to New York could work out in the Yankees' favor, unlike what we've been hearing from numerous places since the trade was announced about 14 months ago.

Off Day Music Recommendation: Lil Wayne


For all the rap fans out there Lil Wayne has released (well it leaked anyway) his latest album titled "I Am Not A Human Being II" and this is probably one of the best songs off the album. The Yankees are off today so jam out and enjoy.

2013 Forecast

The next time you read me will be one week from today, exactly five minutes before the first pitch is thrown at Yankee Stadium.

It's the time of year where we all do our best to do what many say can't be done, which is to predict baseball.

Here is my 2013 forecast for the American League.

AL EAST



Don't believe the hype were the words of wisdom once offered to us all by Flavor Flav.  With all due respect to Mr. Flav, I believe that the Toronto Blue Jays can and will justify the preseason hype surrounding them.

In 2012 the Blue Jays were devastated with injuries, primarily to pitchers,  and set a franchise record by using a total of 31 pitchers.  In addition to the pitching injuries of last year, star Jose Bautista missed much of the season with a wrist condition much like the one that Mark Teixeira recently suffered.

The Blue Jays front office moved boldly in the off season, acquiring pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buerhle, shortstop Jose Reyes, utility man Emilio Bonafacio, and catcher John Buck from the Miami Marlins.  The Jays weren't done with moves yet though, as they then completed a trade with the Mets that spun Buck and some prospects in exchange for 2012 NL Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey.

Not content to rest on those moves, the Blue Jays signed free agent left fielder Melky Cabrera and second baseman Maicer Itzuris.

With Edwin Encarcion emerging as a major weapon last year, Jose Bautista recovered from surgery to repair his wrist, young and exciting third baseman Brett Lawrie, Casey Janssen developing into a really good closer last year, and the new additions to the team, the Blue Jays are loaded with talented players.

The Blue Jays lineup will be a nightmare for opposing pitchers and the rotation extremely solid from top to bottom. The Blue Jays should romp to an easy win in the AL East.

The Yankees, Rays, and Orioles should all have their moments this season and will likely slug out a three way battle for the runner-up spot and a wildcard in the playoffs that I believe will end with the Rays finishing second and heading to the playoffs.

The Rays rotation of Price, Moore, Hellickson, Cobb, and Nieman is the best in the American League in my opinion. The Rays narrowly missed the playoffs last season despite the absence of their best player, Evan Longoria, for much of the season.  While still lacking hitting, a healthy Longoria , a better season from talented center fielder Desmond Jennings, and an upgrade at shortstop to Yunel Escobar should be enough to push the Rays back into the playoffs this year.

The Yankees and Orioles are contenders, but the Yankees will likely need to make trades much better than the pending Vernon Wells trade to make the playoffs and the Orioles can't rely on matching their 2012 records in games decided by one run and extra inning games.

The Red Sox are rebuilding and should bring up the rear.

AL CENTRAL



The Detroit Tigers once again look to be a cinch to win the AL Central and due to the poor competition in their division, should win more games than anyone else in the American League this year and get the #1 seed in the playoffs.

If the Tigers' lineup wasn't scary enough last year, Victor Martinez returns this season at the DH slot and Torii Hunter takes over right field for the Tigers.

The spectacular Justin Verlander is followed by Max Scherzer, Anibal Sanchez, Doug Fister, and Drew Smyly.

While the bullpen may be an issue at times for the Tigers, the expected hitting and starting pitching should lessen the impact that the bullpen issues can have on the season.

The White Sox will be joined by the improved Indians and Royals in their pursuit of second place in the Central.  It's a tough call for the minor awards in the Central but I'll go with the White Sox narrowly over the Indians.  I don't believe that anyone but the Tigers makes the postseason from the Central.

The Twins will continue their "rebuilding" with another tough year at the rear.

AL WEST



The Angels just keep adding players and I believe that the addition of Josh Hamilton will put them over the top and that they will win the AL West.

The Angels have a few concerns, mainly their starting pitching after ace Jered Weaver and Albert Pujols painful foot condition, and their bullpen,  but the addition of Hamilton gives them a murderers row unrivaled in MLB.

The Angels should slug their way to a division win over their arch-rival Texas Rangers, who are being written off a bit too soon.

While the Rangers did suffer a blow when Hamilton chose the Angels over them, they still possess a dangerous lineup.

The Rangers were deeply affected by injuries to their starting pitching last season and if Darvish, Harrison, Holland, Ogando, and Lewis can stay healthy the Rangers are capable of beating the Angels.

The Rangers should take second in the AL West and I project them to get the first wildcard position and advance to the postseason.

The A's should have a solid season and the Mariners should be improved but I can't see either challenging the top the two.

The Astros should suffer one of the most tragic seasons in the history of MLB, moving from arguably the softest division in baseball(the NL Central) to the AL West.  I think it is reasonable to expect them to lose between 110-120 games this season.

Individual Award Predictions



MVP- Miguel Cabrera

Cy Young- Justin Verlander

Manager of the Year- Jim Leyland

Rookie Of the Year- Jurickson Profar

Playoffs

Wildcard game- Rangers beats the Rays

ALDS- Detroit beats the Rangers, Blue Jays beat the Angels

ALCS- Blue Jays beat the Tigers

The Yankees vs. The Yankees All DL Team


The Yankees have quite an impressive roster, not to mention a nice chunk of change, sitting on the DL to start the 2013 season. I know the stories of the Yankees being too old or not having enough depth have been over stated the last 10 years, and that might not be the exaggeration that I think it is, but this may be the year the Yankees Empire may finally fall. Let's look at what the Yankees have sitting on the DL or expect to have on the DL when the season starts and see how that ranks with others around the league.

Only one of them will be on the field for Opening Day

We will simply stick to the 40 man roster for simplicity sake.

Manny Banuelos - $490 K - Likely to miss all of 2013 with Tommy John Surgery

Cesar Cabral - $490 K - Likely to miss 1-2 months rehabbing elbow fracture surgery

Phil Hughes - $7.15 M - Likely to miss one start with back pain

Michael Pineda - $528 K - Likely to be out until June while rehabbing from shoulder surgery

Clay Rapada - $525 K - Likely to start season on DL with shoulder bursitis

Derek Jeter - $17 M - Rehabbing ankle surgery that he had in October of 2012

Alex Rodriguez - $28 M - Second hip surgery in five seasons

Mark Teixeira - $22.5 M - Wrist injury sustained in the WBC

Curtis Granderson - $13 M - Fractured forearm


The Yankees already have a grand total of $89,683,000 of salary sitting on the disabled list and it is only March 24th. That salary ranks higher than 16 MLB teams. That list includes the Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, Oakland A's, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, and the Tampa Bay Rays. The year of the injury looks like it is getting a sequel, and much like in Hollywood, its going to be bigger and... better?

The Yankees total payroll is somewhere in the $210-$211 million range and nearly half of that is sitting on the disabled list right now. This will affect the Yankees on the field product and the off the field product, especially Yankees tickets, merchandise, etc. I am not looking forward to a mediocre Yankees season and I do not want a repeat of 2008 so hopefully we ditch the 2014 plan, acquire someone like Justin Morneau, and win #28 for Mariano Rivera.

2013 Predictions : Cy Young


The 2013 season is right around the corner and I wanted to take a stab at predicting who I think will win the American League and National League Cy Young Awards. Since my psychic ability is about as good as the economy these days I would not put much stock into these predictions as they are merely for fun but here goes anyway.


The winner of the Cy Young Award in the American League will be Jered Weaver. Jered will have an insane amount of run support with Albert Pujols, Josh Hamilton, and company behind him, the defense is always going to be good on a Mike Scoscia team and a team that includes Mike Trout, and the bullpen should be pretty strong as well. I can Jered Weaver winning as many as 22 games next season for the Halos.


The winner of the Cy Young Award in the National League will be Adam Wainwright. He showed a lot of little glimpses of coming back healthy from Tommy John surgery last season and I fully expect him to build on that in 2013. With a great bullpen behind him and the usual Cardinals lineup I can see Adam Wainwright pushing for 20 wins again in 2013. I know it is probably not the popular pick like a Stephen Strasburgh but that is my prediction and I'm sticking to it.

Morning Bits: Vernon Wells, lack of depth, Pettitte

mug3Good morning all.   Let's get going with the some links.

--  Bryan Hoch of MLB.com has some quotes about the Vernon Wells trade.

-- Andy McCullough of The Star Ledger writes that the Yankees lineup lacks depth, talent of years past.

-- David Waldstein of The New York Times mentions that Pettitte still likes the Yankees chances.

Youtube: Travis Hafner Highlights


I figured some videos like this could get us all pumped for the season coming in a week. Enjoy this Travis Hafner highlight mix from when he was with the Indians. Lets hope he can replicate a lot of these with the Yankees in 2013. Go Pronk!!